Tuesday, July 08, 2008

Bumiputra Christians And The Use Of "Allah"

The Christian community in Malaysia by and large is aware that there are two legal suits pending in the High Courts to determine whether we have the right to use the word "Allah". 9 July 2008 is a very important date. The latest development now witnesses Sikh's participation in the fray. Four State Islamic Councils have already applied to be the respondents in this case. They are Majlis Agama Islam dan Adat Melayu Perak (MAIAMP), Majlis Agama Islam Wilayah Persekutuan (MAIWP), Majlis Agama Islam dan Adat Melayu Terengganu (Maidam) and Majlis Agama Islam Pulau Pinang (MAIPP). Its outcome has far reaching implications over the missio praxis particularly among the Malay-speaking congregations who mostly are bumiputera of Sabah, Sarawak and Orang Asli of Semananjung Malaysia. In this context, our church leaders (ordained, lay and including politicians) are in the forefront to battle it out for us so to speak in the court of law. They are exercising their roles and responsibilities as church leaders. We thank God for them and we are grateful to them for doing what they are doing. Frankly speaking, making the final judgment is not going to be easy for the judges who will preside over the two cases.

As I searched the internet on the universal usage of the word "Allah" with particular reference to its currency in the Malaysian contexts, I came across Micah Mandate. I salute Mr Goh for interviewing Tan Sri Bernard Dompok in Putrajaya on major issues, among other things, religious freedom - the use of "Allah" by the Christian community in particular. I do not know Tan Sri very well but I do know one or two politicians who are close to him and through them I know he is a man of principle. Therefore, I BELIEVE in his words. Another contributor in the same site described the turn of events leading to the two court cases (I mentioned earlier) on the word "Allah": one was filed by the Roman Catholic Church (RC) and the other suit was filed by Sidang Injil Borneo (SIB).

The use of "Allah" in our Alkitab, kebaktian kudus, khotbah, latihan perlengkapan, perbualan, etc is long established. It may not be used every second of our daily lives but it is certainly used right through the rites of passages from the day one is baptized as an infant to the day of his or her funeral. It is used in Sunday or weekday services in churches as well as in our homes, in our daily prayers, teachings or cell group meetings. We continue to praise God in heaven and I believe God would accept our praises and worship containing the word "Allah" if we were to use it to address and worship him (see Rev 7:9-12). In short, it is impossible to cease the use of Allah from our communal and religious life.

We have used this word even before Malaysia was formed on 16 September 1963. In fact the Malaysia Bible Society authority would affirm that the word "Allah" has been used in the Malay translation of Mathew's Gospel in 1612 some 350 years before the idea of Malaysia was ever conceived. When Malaysia was formed and proclaimed Bahasa Melayu (now Bahasa Malaysia) became the national language and Islam the official religion. Other religions were freed to exist, express and propagate their faiths. For us, the freedom enshrined in the Constitution also included the free use of words, phrases, terms and terminologies including the word "Allah". I do not think that from that day onward Christians were no longer allowed to use "Allah" in their community? I am interested to find a specific clause in our Federal Constitution spelling out that beginning 1963 Christians no longer can use "Allah" because it would confuse the Muslims and only Muslims can use the word. What has happened I suggest is rather an afterthought pronouncement so to speak, and if so, what other proactive approach could be taken to rectify it? For example, it is far effective to educate Malaysians regarding the use of Allah than legislate its use.

The word has become part of our story telling very early in our struggle towards nation building If we were to delete this most central and fundamental word from our vocabs; we would create huge vacuum in our Christian education programs. It impedes our understanding and teaching of who our God Almighty is. Our prayer language is devoid of the most fundamental truths and understanding of our God who became man, died and rose again and to whom we now make petitions. Charting this path of removing the word in our story telling may seem to others an effortless task - just a delete and forget processes. Or, just use another word - Tuhan. But we cannot underestimate the power of words. Nor can we easily brush aside history and the attachment associated with the word. This Allah word, when rightly taught and correctly understood evokes feelings of intimacy, love, fear, respect, honour and worship of God. It is intrinsic to our ecclesiastical, religious, linguistic and spiritual landscape. We are proud to use a foreign word that has become our national language and ecclesiastically proper when used to address and worship our God. Now we might face the possibility to forget it? The concern that we will lose this privilege to use the word "Allah" is real.

We must also allay the fear among Muslims that we might use the word to confuse or win them over. It is a legitimate concern, especially in the context of Malaysia. I sincerely believe the Christian community will not resort to this scheme. We know we cannot evangelise Muslims and that we can be prosecuted when doing so. What is the difference between our Allah and their Allah? I have sisters and many relatives who are married to Muslims by choice and converted to Islam. If they ask me to explain my "Allah" I will reply that my "Allah" is he who is righteous, loving, compassionate and forgiving. He hates sin but loves the sinner. No one has ever seen Allah because he is spirit but he became human and lived among humans. He died for everybod and rose to heaven. Whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life. That is my "Allah". Period.

In Malaysia's multi-religious framework it is well and good to settle things amicably in the spirit of musyawarah. Musyawarah is considered a vital tool in problem-solving. However, going by the present situation we might as well allow the court to help settle this case once and for all. Let us pray that the judgment favours us. If the judgment does not favour us this scenario will take place; we cannot use the word "Allah" anymore in our daily conversation, religious or community activities. The reason is because we might "confuse" the followers of the official religion of this country. As a pastor-teacher-preacher and theologian in the local church I naturally follow this event with interest and anticipation because it has far reaching implications in the way we treat our literature, liturgy, songs, ministry and mission enterprises, etc. What will be our next option (I am not answering this question in this article, yet)?

By the way, in the context of the universal declaration of human rights, does one has the right to require an adherent of another religion not to use a specific word because that specific word belongs only to his religion? The two judges shoulder a heavy responsibility in interpreting the law when they preside over the two pending and separate court cases over a common issue - the right to use the word "Allah" We trust in God and pray that the court will deliver a favourable judgment to us.

(By LIDIS SINGKUNG/ MySinchew)-----------------------------------------------Lidis Singkung is an Anglican clergyman and also a Kadazandusun. Presentlyhe serves in St Patrick's Anglican Church in Tawau). Used by permission ofwww.themicahmandate.org.------------------------------------------------------------------

6 comments:

Some of the biggest misconceptions that many non-Muslims have about Islam have to do with the word “Allah”. For various reasons, many people have come to believe that Muslims worship a different God than Christians and Jews. This is totally false, since “Allah” is simply the Arabic word for “God” - and there is only One God. Let there be no doubt - Muslims worship the God of Noah, Abraham, Moses, David and Jesus - peace be upon them all. However, it is certainly true that Jews, Christians and Muslims all have different concepts of Almighty God. For example, Muslims - like Jews - reject the Christian beliefs of the Trinity and the Divine Incarnation. This, however, doesn’t mean that each of these three religions worships a different God - because, as we have already said, there is only One True God. Judaism, Christianity and Islam all claim to be “Abrahamic Faiths”, and all of them are also classified as “monotheistic”. However, Islam teaches that other religions have, in one way or another, distorted and nullified a pure and proper belief in Almighty God by neglecting His true teachings and mixing them with man-made ideas. First of all, it is important to note that “Allah” is the same word that Arabic-speaking Christians and Jews use for God. If you pick up an Arabic Bible, you will see the word “Allah” being used where “God” is used in English. This is because “Allah” is the only word in the Arabic language equivalent to the English word “God” with a capital “G”. Additionally, the word “Allah” cannot be made plural or given gender (i.e. masculine or feminine), which goes hand-in-hand with the Islamic concept of God. Because of this, and also because the Qur’an, which is the holy scripture of Muslims, was revealed in the Arabic language, some Muslims use the word “Allah” for “God”, even when they are speaking other languages. This is not unique to the word “Allah”, since many Muslims tend to use Arabic words when discussing Islamic issues, regardless of the language which they speak. This is because the universal teachings of Islam - even though they have been translated iin every major language - have been preserved in the Arabic language.It is interesting to note that the Aramaic word “El”, which is the word for God in the language that Jesus spoke, is certainly more similar in sound to the word “Allah” than the English word “God”. This also holds true for the various Hebrew words for God, which are “El” and “Elah”, and the plural form “Elohim”. The reason for these similarities is that Aramaic, Hebrew and Arabic are all Semitic languages with common origins. It should also be noted that in translating the Bible into English, the Hebrew word “El” is translated variously as “God”, “god” and “angel”! This imprecise language allows different translators, based on their preconceived notions, to translate the word to fit their own views. The Arabic word “Allah” presents no such difficulty or ambiguity, since it is only used for Almighty God alone. Additionally, in English, the only difference between “god”, meaning a false god, and “God”, meaning the One True God, is the capital “G”. In the Arabic alphabet, since it does not have capital letters, the word for God (i.e. Allah) is formed by adding the equivalent to the English word “the” (Al-) to the Arabic word for “god/God” (ilah). So the Arabic word “Allah” literally it means “The God” - the “Al-” in Arabic basically serving the same function as the capital “G” in English. Due to the above mentioned facts, a more accurate translation of the word “Allah” into English might be “The One -and-Only God” or “The One Truee God”.

More importantly, it should also be noted that the Arabic word “Allah” contains a deep religious message due to its root meaning and origin. This is because it stems from the Arabic verb ta’allaha (or alaha), which means “to be worshipped”. Thus in Arabic, the word “Allah” means “The One who deserves all worship”. This, in a nutshell, is the Pure Monotheistic message of Islam. You see, according to Islam, “monotheism” is much more than simply believing in the existence of “only One God” - as seemingly opposed to two, three or more. If one understands the root meaning of the word “Allah”, this point should become clear. One should understand that Islam’s criticism of the other religions that claim to be “monotheistic” is not because they are “polytheistic” in the classic sense, but because they direct various forms of worship to other than Almighty God. We will discuss the meaning of worship in Islam below, however, before moving on it should be noted that many non-Muslims are unaware of the distinction between simply believing in the existence of only One God and reserving all worship for Him alone. Many Christians are painfully unaware of this point, and thus you often find them asking how Muslims can accuse the followers of Jesus, peace be upon him, of being “polytheists” when they were all “monotheistic Jews”. First of all, it should be clarified that the word “polytheist” doesn’t really sound right in this context, since to many it implies simply believing in the existence of more than one God. So in an Islamic context, “associators”, “man-worshippers” or “creature worshippers” might be more accurate and appropriate terms - especially since Christians believe Jesus to be both “100% God and 100% man”, while still paying lip-service to God’s “Oneness”. However, as we’re previously touched upon, what is really at the root of this problem is the fact that Christians - as well as the members of other religions - don’t really know what “monotheism” means - especially in the Islamic sense. All of the books, articles and papers that I’ve read which were written by Christians invariably limit “monotheism” to believing in the existence of “One Sovereign and Creator God”. Islam, however, teaches much more than this.

Suffice it to say that just because someone claims to be a “monotheistic” Jew, Christian or Muslim, that doesn’t keep them from falling into corrupt beliefs and idolatrous practices. Many people, including some Muslims, claim belief in “One God” even though they’ve fallen into acts of idolatry. Certainly, many Protestants accuse Roman Catholics of idolatrous practices in regards to the saints and the Virgin Mary. Likewise, the Greek Orthodox Church is considered “idolatrous” by many other Christians because in much of their worship they use icons. However, if you ask a Roman Catholic or a Greek Orthodox person if God is “One”, they will invariably answer: “Yes!”. This lip-service, however, does not stop them from being “creature worshipping” idolaters. The same goes for Hindus, who just consider their gods to be “manifestations” or “incarnations” of the One Supreme God.

Everyone should be aware of the fact that throughout the long history of the “Abrahamic Faiths”, there have people who, while believing in “One God”, have adopted beliefs and practices that completely nullify their claim to “monotheism”. This is the Muslim view of Christians. We’re well aware of the fact that they claim belief in “One God” with their lips, but this doesn’t mean that they don’t nullify their claim in other ways. This is because many people simply haven’t been taught everything that Pure Monotheism entails. From an Islamic point of view, “monotheism” can be nullified in many ways. For example, simply believing that it is permissible to rule by Western “liberal” and “democratic” laws in lieu of the Divinely Revealed Law of Almighty God makes one a “polytheist”. Certainly, a person who does such a thing, whether Jewish, Christian or Muslim, doesn’t ever believe that there is another Almighty Creator and Sovereign Lord. However, for all practical purposes, such a person has take another “god”, whether they choose to admit it or not. In this way they are associating partners with Almighty God (Arabic: shirk), and thus become a “polytheist” in a practical sense, regardless of their lip-service to “monotheism”. This holds true even if the person doesn’t believe what they are doing is “worship”. For example, Roman Catholics who pray to the Virgin Mary will staunchly deny that they are “worshipping” her. They instead call it “adoration” or some other watered-down term. However, from an Islamic point of view, what is worship if not this? Islam teaches that prayer and supplication are the marrow of worship, so if one directs their prayers to an intermediary (even if the pray is “ultimately” meant for God), then what is left of worship? Additionally, how can someone who believes in Almighty God follow man-made laws instead of God’s Law, without admitting that they’ve begun worshipping other than God? Do they know better than God?

Additionally, the Old Testament makes it perfectly clear that making a “graven image” of any created thing (not to mention ones which are supposed to “represent” Almighty God) is prohibited. Please see Exodus 20:4-6, Leviticus 26:1 and Deuteronomy 4:16, 23, 25, 5:8 and Nehemiah 9:6 for some statements in regards to this point. Without addressing the issue that Christians commonly violate the unambiguous commandment not to even “make” representations of anything that is in the “heavens above or on the earth beneath”, these verses not only teach that worshipping idols is prohibited, but also that Almighty God is eternally distinct from His creation and thus nothing in His creation can represent Him. To believe otherwise is to be a de facto idol worshipper - even if one claims belief in one, and only one, “True God”. In Exodus 20:4-6 and Deuteronomy 4:16, Almighty God - who is a “Jealous God” - makes it perfectly clear that He is distinct from His creation.

By giving such clear and merciful guidance to human beings, God is establishing a universal and eternal Truth for the benefit of mankind. This eternal Truth is the bedrock of religious guidance, since once people begin to believe that Almighty God mixes with or can be represented by His creation, they can be duped into believing almost anything. Once someone accepts that God has become “incarnate” in His creation, or that someone or something is a “manifestation” - and thus representation - of Him, the floodgates are open and “Truth” becomes a matter of subjective guesswork. Once the first and most basic concept is violated - regardless of how complicated and sophisticated the rationale for it might be - it is very easy to fall further and further away from the Eternal Truth of Pure Monotheism. In the final analysis, it is not a question of whether God is capable of becoming a man, but rather a question of whether one bases their beliefs about God on clear, unambiguous and authentic guidance. Once it is left up to the human mind to decide what Almighty God can and cannot do, the stage is set for misguidance to take root. Human speculation about God only ends up leading to misguidance and despair, since no clear conclusions can ever be reached. For example, is God capable of creating an object so heavy that He is incapable of moving it? If not, does that mean that He is incapable? It is because of misguided questions like this that Islam clearly teaches that mankind should only say about God what He has said about Himself. This means all of our ideas about God must be based on Revelation - not human speculation. In short, the final prophet of Islam - Muhammad - was sent by Almighty God to preach the same Pure Monotheism that was practiced by Noah, Abraham, Moses, David and Jesus - peace be upon them all. This Pure Monotheism means not only believing that there is only One God in existence, but realizing that He is transcedent above His creation and that all worship is due to Him alone.

Before concluding, we should probably address the practice of those Muslims who insist on using the Arabic word “Allah” even when speaking English. Even though this practice certainly is not to be condemned when it is done around those who understand the meaning of the Arabic word “Allah”, it is my experience - both during my years as a non-Muslim and my years as a Muslim - that such a practice can (and usually ddoes) breed misunderstanding. It seems that often times, many of the Muslims who use the word “Allah” in lieu of the word “God”, even when trying to attract people to Islam, are unaware of the severe misunderstandings that many non-Muslims have about Islam (and the distorted way which Islam has been portrayed in the West). Insisting on using the word “Allah” only fuels the flames of misunderstanding - so there’s no good reason to do it. I’ve often wondered what value some Muslims think that using the word “Allah” adds to the Pure Message that they are trying to convey. ( . . . and I’m still waiting for an answer!) Unfortunately, those Muslims who insist on using the word “Allah” even when addressing non-Muslims who are unfamiliar with Islam and the Arabic language, do both a disservice to themselves and their religion. Unfortunately, this practice is usually based on the false assumption - by a non-native speaker of English - that the word “God” in English is incapable of expressing a pure and proper belief in Almighty God. This is certainly false. If someone says that the English word “God” cannot be used to express the Pure Islamic Belief in Tawhid, they are wrong not because they don’t understand Tawhid, but simply because they don’t understand the English language. Many people who insist on using the Arabic word “Allah” usually don’t realize this, because in reality, they are not so much affirming the word “Allah” as they are rejecting the word “God” as unsuitable - based on incorrect assumptions. For someone to assume that the word “God” presupposes a certain theological point-of-view (such as the Trinity) is simply Wrong - and that’s Wrong with a capital “W”. To say the word “God” should be rejected because it can be changed into “god”, “gods” or “goddess” is illogical because each of these words has a distinctive meaning and a distinctive spelling - at least to someone who knows how to speak English correctly. Using the same logic, I can demonstrate that the root letters “ktb” can be used to form the Arabic words “kitab” (book), “maktabah” (library), “maktab” (office) and “kaatib” (writer), but does that mean that these words have the same meaning? Do Arabic-speaking people go through life confusing libraries with writers and offices with books (both in conversation and in reality)? I think not! This is not to mention the fact that if the Arabic “Al-” was put in front of these words in order to make them definite, confusion would be even less likely! So the logic in both cases is the same, and this is because even though the same letters are used in “God” and “god”, these two words have two different meanings in the English language. The capital “G” implies something different than the small “g” - and anyone who denies this simply doesn’t know how to speak the English language.

In concluding this point, it should be mentioned that Arabic-speaking Muslims who believe in Pure Tawhid, Arabic-speaking Christians, the idol worshippers of Mecca and (so-called) Muslims who believe in “Wahdat al-Wujud” all use the word “Allah”. However, does this guarantee all of them proper belief in “Allah”? Certainly not, because if they have a corrupt concept of “Allah” it doesn’t matter what word they use!

This brings us to a more important point: It should be clearly understood that what Islam is primarily concerned with is correcting mankind’s concept of Almighty God. What we are ultimately going to be held accountable at the end of our life is not whether we prefer the word “Allah” over the word “God”, but what our concept of God is. Language is only a side issue. A person can have an incorrect concept of God while using the word “Allah”, and likewise a person can have a correct concept of God while using the word “God”. This is because both of these words are equally capable of being misused and being improperly defined. As we’ve already mentioned, using the word “Allah” no more insinuates belief in the Unity of God than the use of the word “God” insinuates belief in the Trinity - or any other theological opinion. Naturally, when God sends a revelation to mankind through a prophet, He is going to send it in a language that the people who receive it can understand and relate to. Almighty God makes this clear in the Qur’an, when He states:

“Never did We send a Messenger except (to teach) in the language of his (own) people in order to make (things) clear to them.”

(Qur’an, Chapter 14 - “Abraham”, Verse 4)

As Muslims, we think that it is unfortunate that we have to go into details on such seemingly minor issues, but so many falsehoods have been heaped upon our religion, that we feel that it is our duty to try to break down the barriers of falsehood. This isn’t always easy, since there is a lot of anti-Islamic literature in existence which tries to make Islam look like something strange and foreign to Westerners. There are some people out there, who are obviously not on the side of truth, that want to get people to believe that “Allah” is just some Arabian “god”, and that Islam is completely “other” - meaning that it has no common roots with the other Abrahamic religions (i.e. Christianity and Judaism). To say that Muslims worship a different “God” because they say “Allah” is just as illogical as saying that French people worship another God because they use the word “Dieu”, that Spanish-speaking people worship a different God because they say “Dios” or that the Hebrews worshipped a different God because they sometimes call Him “Yahweh”. Certainly, reasoning like this is quite ridiculous! It should also be mentioned, that claiming that any one language uses the only the correct word for God is tantamount to denying the universality of God’s message to mankind, which was to all nations, tribes and people through various prophets who spoke different languages.

Before closing, we would like everyone to be aware of the fact that some Christian missionary organizations print English literature intended to teach Christians about Islam which say such things as: “Allah is the god of the Muslims” and that “Muhammad came to get people to believe in the god Allah” - implying that “Allah” is some sort of false “god”. However, when these same organizations print literature in the Arabic language, hoping to lead Arabic-speaking Muslims “to Christ”, they use the word “Allah” for God. It seems that if they were on the side of truth, they would not have to resort to such inconsistencies. And on an even more ridiculous note . . . there are also missionary organizations that exceed this in ignorance (or deceit) by writing books that call on Muslims to give up their belief in “Allah”, and instead worship the “Lord” Jesus, “the Son of God”. Besides making it abundantly clear that they are outside the community of Pure Monotheism, the people who write such material don’t even realize that if they wrote such a pamphlet in Arabic, it would be self-contradictory. This is because in an Arabic Bible Jesus is the “Son of Allah”! If an Arabic-speaking person gave up the worship of “Allah”, they would have no God to worship, since “Allah” is simply the Arabic word for God!

Before we conclude, however, we would like to ask our readers to ask themselves what they think the reasons are behind all of these lies? If Islam was just some false religion that didn’t make any sense, would so many people, from Western scholars to Christian missionaries, have to tell so many lies about it? The reason is that the Ultimate Truth of Islam stands on solid ground and its unshakable belief in the Unity of God is above reproach. Due to this, Christians can’t criticize its doctrines directly, but instead make up things about Islam that aren’t true so that people lose the desire to learn more. If Muslims were able to present Islam in the proper way to people in the West, it surely might make many people reconsider and re-evaluate their own beliefs. It is quite likely that Christians, when they find out that there is a universal religion in the world that teaches people to worship and love God, while also practicing Pure Monotheism, would at least feel that they should re-examine the basis for their own beliefs and doctrines

Abrahamic Faith consists of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. These religions have something in common such as the belief of Adam is the first man created and theancestor of all human beings, Abraham as a prophet, and the Torat as a revelation of God. Nevertheless there are also some significance differences among them.

Judaism is a tribal religion that can only confessed by a Jew tribe. This religion could not be spread to Non Jew. That is why the number of its follower is only a few. Around 14 million people in the world. Meanwhile the Christianity and Islam are spreading toall people in the world and confessed by billions of people.

About God

Judaism and Islam regard there is only one God. The Jews call the God as Yahweh which is third singular person means “He who is.” Muslims call God as Allahwhich is singular form and genderless from ilah (God). In the Quran, chapter Al Ikhlas stated the unity of God:

Say: He is Allah, the One!Allah, the eternally Besought of all!He begetteth not nor was begotten.And there is none comparable unto Him.

Actually in the Bible the Unity of God also stated in the Ten Commandments of God in Exodus 20:20:1 And God spake all these words, saying, 2 I am theLORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me. [Exodus 20:1-3]

Though in Judaism and Islam the Monotheism of God is absolute including of God’s essence, in Christianity there is a doctrine named Trinity that says God existsas 3 persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit who are united in one substance or being. The trinity consists of 2 words: Three and Unity. Three is One and One isthree.

This concept is contradicted to Al Quran in Chapter Al Ikhlas that says God has no Father or Son. The Bible says:

“The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is blessed for evermore, knoweth that I lie not.”[2 Corinthian 11:31]

“Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort” [2 Corinthian 1:3]

The Bible verses above clearly said that God is the Father of Lord Jesus Christ. On the other hand, in Islam strictly stated the Oneness of God, that God is one, God has no Father or Son as follows:

“And say: Praise be to Allah, Who hath not taken unto Himself a son, and Who hath no partner in the Sovereignty,nor hath He any protecting friend throughdependence. And magnify Him with all magnificence.” [Al Israa’:111]

Allah has no Son or Partner:

“Allah hath not chosen any son, nor is there any God along with Him; else would each God have assuredly championed that which he created, and some of themwould assuredly have overcome others. Glorified be Allah above all that they allege.” [Al Mu’minuun:91]

About JesusThe Jews not only deny Jesus as a God or a prophet, but they also tried to kill Jesus as a pervert.

On the contrary, the Christians regard Jesus as a God:

“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.” [2 Corinthian 13:14]

Islam regards Jesus not as a God, but only a human being that became a messenger of God:

“And when Allah saith: O Jesus, son of Mary! Didst thou say my mother for two gods beside Allah? He saith: Be glorified to which I had no right. If I usedto say it, then Thou my mind, and I know not what is in Thy mind. Lo! Thou, only Things Hidden.” [Al Maa’idah:116]

According to Islam, Jesus only a prophet to call people to worship only one God as God order in the Ten Commandments:

“I spake unto them only that which Thou commandedst me, and your Lord. I was a witness of them while I dwelt tookest me Thou wast the Watcher over them. Thouart” [Al Maa’idah:117]

About Jesus Parent

As the Bible verses above, the Christianity regards Jesus as the Son of God:

“The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God” [Mark 1:1]

“He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David” [Luke 1:32]

Nonetheless, on Matthew 1:16-18 said that Jesus’ father is Joseph though Jesus was born from virgin Mary before Mary married to Joseph or having sex with him:

“1:16 And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ. 17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteengenerations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteengenerations. 18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found withchild of the Holy Ghost.” [Matthew 1:16-18]

Jesus’ family tree at last follows Joseph’s instead of Mary’s.

On another verse described Jesus as the son of David, the son of Abraham.

The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son ofDavid, the son of Abraham.” [Matthew 1:1]

Jesus the Son of Man:

“For the Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day.” [Matthew 12:8]

According to Islam Jesus is the Son of Mary. Not the Son of God or Joseph:

“The Messiah, son of Mary, was no other than a messenger, whom had passed away before him. And his mother was a used to eat (earthly) food. See how wemake the revelations they are turned away!” [Al Maa’idah:75]

The Power of God

In the Bible, Genesis 32:25-28 said that Jacob fought with God from night until dawn. When God could not defeated Jacob, God touch the hollow of Jacob’s thigh.God named Jacob as Israel because Jacob has fought God and men and Jacob prevailed:

“32:24 And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. 25 And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him.26 And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said,I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.27 And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob.28 And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thoupower with God and with men, and hast prevailed.” [Genesis 32:24-28]

In the Gospel Matthew told how Jesus the God caught, spit, and beaten by men:

“27:27 Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesusinto the common hall, and gathered unto him the wholeband of soldiers.28 And they stripped him, and put onhim a scarlet robe.29 And when they had platted acrown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reedin his right hand: and they bowed the knee before him,and mocked him, saying, Hail, King of the Jews!30 And they spit upon him, and took the reed, andsmote him on the head.31 And after that they had mocked him, they took therobe off from him, and put his own raiment on him, andled him away to crucify him.” [Matthew 27:27-31]

In Islam God is the Most Powerful. He cannot be beaten by any man even if they are all join together against Him:

“If He will, He can be rid of you and bring (instead of you). That is not a hard thing for Allah.” [Al Faathir: 16-17]

“Thy Lord is the Absolute, the Lord of Mercy. If He will, He can remove you and can cause what He will to follow after you, even as He raised you from the seedof other folk.” [Al An’aam:133]

From the verses of Holy Book above, can you tell us which the Most Powerful God is?

“And say: Praise be to Allah, Who hath not taken unto Himself a son, and Who hath no partner in the Sovereignty, nor hath He any protecting friend throughdependence. And magnify Him with all magnificence.” [Al Israa’:111]

Whom should we worship for? The weak and need help God or the Most Powerful God?

The Knowledge of God

In Gospel Mark 11:12-13 said that Jesus felt hungry and did not know if the Fig tree is fruitless because it is not its season.

11:12 And on the morrow, when they were come from Bethany, he was hungry:13 And seeing a fig tree afar off having leaves, he came, if haply he might find any thing thereon: and when he came to it, he found nothing but leaves; forthe time of figs was not yet.” [Mark 11:12-13]

In Islam God is All Knowing:

“And with Him are the keys of the invisible. None but He knoweth them. And He knoweth what is in the land and the sea. Not a leaf falleth but He knoweth it. Nota grain amid the darkness of the earth, naught of wet or dry but it is noted in a clear record“ [Al An’aam:59]

Is God Sleep?

In Matthew 8:24 said that Jesus was a sleep:“And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep.” [Matthew 8:24]

According to Islam, God never feel weak such as sleepy or sleep:

Allah! There is no God save Him, the Alive, theEternal. Neither slumber nor sleep overtaketh Him.Unto Him belongeth whatsoever is in the heavens and whatsoever is in the earth. Who is he that intercedeth with Him save by His leave? He knoweth that which isin front of them and that which is behind them, while they encompass nothing of His knowledge save what He will. His throne includeth the heavens and the earth,and He is never weary of preserving them. He is the Sublime, the Tremendous.” [Al Baqarah:255]

Prohibition of Statue

In the Ten Commandments stated in Exodus 20:4-5 God forbid man to make any statue:

20:4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.20:5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the childrenunto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me” [Exodus 20:4-5]

However the Christians now make many statues of Jesusand Mary and put them on the churches.

In Islam making statues is forbidden. In HadeethBukharee, Ummu Salamah and Ummu Habibah said there is a beautiful church in Habsyi (Mary Church) with some beautiful statues. Muhammad said “When their saint died, the Christians will build church on the grave. Then they make many statues in the church. They are the worst creatures before God in the day ofjudgement”

The Holy Book

Though the Jews Holy Book is quoted in Bible as the Old Testament, yet there are some significant differences between them. The Jews Holy Book mostlywritten in Hebrew and a few in Aramaic. On the other the Old Testament in Christianity the oldest one written in Greek with 7 additional books.

The New Testament consists of 27 books (including 4 gospels) and originally written in Greek between 50-150 AD (Jesus died arount 29 AD).

The gospel consists of 4 different versions originally written in Greek namely: Mark, Matthew, Luke, and John. The Gospels written around 70-100 AD about 40years after the death of Jesus.

For example, Luke wrote Gospel for a man called Theophilus

1:1 For as much as many have taken in hand to setforth in order a declaration of those things which aremost surely believed among us,

2 Even as they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning wereeyewitnesses, and ministers of the word;

3 It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding ofall things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus, 4 That thou mightestknow the certainty of those things, wherein thou hastbeen instructed.” [Luke 1:1-4]

Luke sometime only guesses such as Jesus about thirty years of age and use the word “As was supposed”.

“And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli” [Luke 3:23]

Though Jesus language is Aramaic, but the New Testament original language at least the oldest version is all in Greek.

If in Luke 3:23 Jesus’ grand father’s name is Heli,

In Matthew 1:16 Jesus’ grand father is Jacob:

“And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whomwas born Jesus, who is called Christ” [Matthew 1:16]

On the other hand, there is only one version of the Al Quran which is memorized by millions of Muslims and still in its original language: Arab, the language ofMuhammad.

“Lo! We revealed it (Al Quran) on the Night of Power” [Al Qadr:1]

Al Quran revealed by Allah to Muhammad. And Muhammad passed it on his followers. Some of the followers memorized Al Quran, some wrote it down on several media (leaves, bones, leather, etc). Abu Bakar, Muhammad’s friend, gather the Al Quran to be one. And Usman, another Muhammad’s friend, then compiled the Quran into one book called Mushaf Usmani with punctuation mark so the spelling complies with the Arabic language standard.

The Circumcision Obligation for Men

In Judaism and Islam, Circumcision is an obligation for men. It is complied with Bible:

17:10 This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised. 11 And ye shallcircumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you. 12 And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you,every man child in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, which is not of thy seed.13 He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlastingcovenant.14 And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cutoff from his people; he hath broken my covenant”[Genesis 17:10-14]

The uncircumcised man is regarded as unclean in Isaiah 52:1:

“Awake, awake; put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city: for henceforth there shall no more come into thee theuncircumcised and the unclean” [Isaiah 52:1]

However though God said in Genesis 17:13 that circumcision is an everlasting covenant, the Christians no longer doing the obligation because Paul who claimed become apostle after Jesus died (when Jesus alive Paul is Jesus enemy) said thatcircumcision is no longer an obligation:

2:25 For circumcision verily profiteth, if thou keep the law: but if thou be a breaker of the law, thy circumcision is made uncircumcision. 26 Therefore if the uncircumcision keep the righteousness of the law, shall not his uncircumcision be counted for circumcision? 27 And shall not uncircumcision which is by nature, if it fulfil the law, judge thee, who by the letter and circumcision dost transgress the law?2:28 For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: 29 But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; andcircumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.3:1 What advantage then hath the Jew? or what profit is there of circumcision?” [Romans 2:25-29 – 3:1]

The Prohibition of Eating Swine

In Judaism and Islam, eating swine is strictly forbidden. It is complied with Leviticus 11:7-8 and Deuteronomy 14:8:

11:7 And the swine, though he divide the hoof, and be cloven-footed, yet he cheweth not the cud; he is unclean to you. 8 Of their flesh shall ye not eat, andtheir carcass shall ye not touch; they are unclean to you.” [Leviticus 11:7-8]

In the Al Quran the prohibition stated:

“He hath forbidden you only carrion, and blood, and swine flesh, and that which hath been immolated to (the name of) any other than Allah. But he who isdriven by necessity, neither craving nor transgressing, it is no sin for him. Lo! Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.” [Al Baqarah:173]

Nevertheless Swine Flesh is a common food among the Christians now.

Original Sin

In the Christianity known the Original Sin Doctrine. All human race are sinners because of Adam committed sin by eating forbidden fruit. That is why Jesus sentdown as the Saviour to redeem the original sin. In Exodus 20:5 God said that He will punish the children, the third and fourth generation for theiniquity of their fathers:

“Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the childrenunto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;” [Exodus 20:5]

In Islam every one will only responsible for their ownsin. No one can be punished because of other people sin:

“Say: Shall I seek another than Allah for Lord, whenHe is Lord of all things? Each soul earneth only onits own account, nor doth any laden bear another'sload. Then unto your Lord is your return and He willtell you that wherein ye differed.” [Al An’aam:164]

Slander on Lot

In the Bible, Genesis 19:30-38 said that Lot had drink wine and committed sexual intercourse with his own daughters (incest) and had children (orgrandchildren?) from them:

19:30 And Lot went up out of Zoar, and dwelt in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he feared to dwell in Zoar: and he dwelt in a cave, heand his two daughters.31 And the firstborn said unto the younger, Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in unto us after the manner of all the earth:32 Come, letus make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.33 And they made their father drink wine that night: and the firstborn went in, and lay with her father; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when shearose.34 And it came to pass on the morrow, that the firstborn said unto the younger, Behold, I lay yester night with my father: let us make him drink wine this night also; and go thou in, and lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.35 And they made their father drink wine that night also: and the younger arose, and lay with him; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose.36 Thus were both the daughters of Lot with child by their father.37 And the first born bare a son, and called his name Moab: the same is the father of the Moabites unto this day.38 And the younger, she also bare a son, and called his name Benammi: the same is the father of the children of Ammon unto this day.” [Genesis 19:30-38]

In Islam stated that Lot is really a prophet and cleanfrom such a sin such as drinking liquor or doing incest:

“And lo! Lot verily was of those sent (to warn)” [Ash Shaafaat:133]

In the Quran stated that God has raised Lot’s degreeover people. If common people will not commit adulterywith their own daughter, then a prophet such as Lotwill not such a thing:

“And Ishmael and Elisha and Jonah and Lot. Each one of them did We prefer above (Our) creatures” [Al An’aam:86]

Slander on David

In Bible, 2 Samuel 11:2-17 said that David (who in Matthew 1:1 described as Jesus’ father) committed adultery with Uriah’s wife, Bathsheba. After that,David ordered Joab to send Uriah to the front line of a battle and then deserted him so Uriah get killed by the enemy:

11:2 And it came to pass in an eveningtide, that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king's house: and from the roof he saw a womanwashing herself; and the woman was very beautiful to look upon.3 And David sent and inquired after the woman. And one said, Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?4 And David sent messengers, and took her; and she came in unto him, and he lay with her; for she was purified from her uncleanness: and she returned untoher house.” [2 Samuel 11:2-4]

In 2 Samuel 13:11-14 also stated that the son of David, Amnon raped his own sister, Tamar:

13:11 And when she had brought them unto him to eat, he took hold of her, and said unto her, Come lie with me, my sister.12 And she answered him, Nay, my brother, do not force me; for no such thing ought to be done in Israel: do not thou this folly.13 And I, whither shall I cause my shame to go? and as for thee, thou shalt be as one of the fools in Israel. Now therefore, I pray thee, speak unto the king; forhe will not withhold me from thee.14 Howbeit he would not hearken unto her voice: but, being stronger than she, forced her, and lay with her.” [2 Samuel 13:11-14]

In the Al Quran, the Slander over David is denied:

“Those of the children of Israel who went astray were cursed by the tongue of David, and of Jesus, son of Mary. That was because they rebelled and used totransgress.” [Al Maa-idah:78]

Prohibition of Adultery / Sex Story

In the story of Adultery or prohibition of Adultery, the Bible described it very detailed:

23:1 The word of the LORD came again unto me, saying, 2 Son of man, there were two women, the daughters of one mother:3 And they committed whoredoms in Egypt; they committed whoredoms in their youth: there were their breasts pressed, and there they bruised the teats of their virginity.

4 And the names of them were Aholah the elder, and Aholibah her sister: and they were mine, and they bare sons and daughters. Thus were their names; Samaria isAholah, and Jerusalem Aholibah.5 And Aholah played the harlot when she was mine; and she doted on her lovers, on the Assyrians her neighbours, 6 Which were clothed with blue, captains and rulers, all of them desirable young men, horsemen riding upon horses.7 Thus she committed her whoredoms with them, with all of them that were the chosen men of Assyria, and with all on whom she doted: with all their idols she defiled herself.8 Neither left she her whoredoms brought from Egypt:for in her youth they lay with her, and they bruised the breasts of her virginity, and poured their whoredom upon her. 9 Wherefore I have delivered her into the hand of her lovers, into the hand of the Assyrians, upon whom she doted.0 These discovered her nakedness: they took her sons and her daughters, and slew her with the sword: and she became famous among women; for they had executedjudgment upon her.11 And when her sister Aholibah saw this, she was more corrupt in her inordinate love than she, and in her whoredoms more than her sister in her whoredoms.12 She doted upon the Assyrians her neighbours, captains and rulers clothed most gorgeously, horsemen riding upon horses, all of them desirable young men.13 Then I saw that she was defiled, that they took both one way,14 And that she increased her whoredoms: for when she saw men portrayed upon the wall, the images of the Chaldeans pourtrayed with vermilion,15 Girded withgirdles upon their loins, exceeding in dyed attire upon their heads, all of them princes to look to, after the manner of the Babylonians of Chaldea, theland of their nativity:16 And as soon as she saw them with her eyes, she doted upon them, and sent messengers unto them into Chaldea.17 And the Babylonians came to her into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their whoredom, and she was polluted with them, and her mind was alienatedfrom them.18 So she discovered her whoredoms, and discovered her nakedness: then my mind was alienated from her, like as my mind was alienated from her sister.19 Yet she multiplied her whoredoms, in calling to remembrance the days of her youth, wherein she had played the harlot in the land of Egypt. 20 For she doted upon their paramours, whose flesh is as the flesh of asses, and whose issue is like the issue of horses.21 Thus thou calledst to remembrance the lewdness of thy youth, in bruising thy teats by the Egyptians for the paps of thy youth.” [Ezekiel 23:1-21]

In Song of Solomon 7:1-8 the sexual desire described like this:

7:1 How beautiful are thy feet with shoes, O prince's daughter! the joints of thy thighs are like jewels, the work of the hands of a cunning workman.2 Thy navel is like a round goblet, which wanteth not liquor: thy belly is like an heap of wheat set about with lilies.3 Thy two breasts are like two young roes that are twins.4 Thy neck is as a tower of ivory; thine eyes like the fishpools in Heshbon, by the gate of Bathrabbim: thy nose is as the tower of Lebanon which looketh towardDamascus.5 Thine head upon thee is like Carmel, and the hair of thine head like purple; the king is held in the galleries.6 How fair and how pleasant art thou, O love, for delights!7 This thy stature is like to a palm tree, and thy breasts to clusters of grapes.8 I said, I will go up to the palm tree, I will take hold of the boughs thereof: now also thy breasts shall be as clusters of the vine, and the smell of thy noselike apples” [Song of Solomon 7:1-8]

In the Al Quran the prohibition of Adultery described in a gentle way so it do not arouse sexual desire of its readers. The readers will not have desire to havesex with his wife or close friend or masturbate after reading the holy book:

“And come not near unto adultery. Lo! it is an abomination and an evil way. “ [Al Israa’:32]

Even the permission of having sex in the month of fasting described in a very decent way:

“It is made lawful for you to go unto your wives on the night of the fast. They are raiment for you and ye are raiment for them.” [Al Baqarah:187]

That is the Holy Book of Al Quran!

Retaliation Law

In the Old Testament, Exodus 21:11-22:19 stated the Retaliation Law, namely death sentence for killer, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth:

“He that smiteth a man, so that he die, shall be surely put to death.” [Exodus 21:12]

But on the New Testament the Retaliation Law is eliminated and the Christians no longer follow the rule.

In the Al Quran the Retaliation Law restored:

“O ye who believe! Retaliation is prescribed for you in the matter of the murdered; the freeman for the freeman, and the slave for the slave, and the femalefor the female...” [Al Baqarah:178]

The Retaliation Law applied so people will think twice before they kill others. If they kill other people then they will be sentenced to death so they could nolonger kill innocent people again in the future By this way the world will be safer for innocent people (but not for the killers):

“And there is life for you in retaliation, O men of understanding, that ye may ward off (evil).” [Al Baqarah:179]

Evil or Serpent who Cheated Adam and Eve?

In Genesis 3:1-19 said that Serpent is the most clever among animals and could talk so it could cheat human: Adam and Eve:

3:1 Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eatof every tree of the garden?2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shallbe as gods, knowing good and evil.6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruitthereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.” [Genesis 3:1-6]

3:13 And the LORD God said unto the woman, What isthis that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.14 And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy bellyshalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life” [Genesis 3:13-14]

In the Quran said that the cheater of Adam and Eve is Satan. Not animal like serpent:

“But Satan caused them to deflect there from and expelled them from the (happy) state in which they were; and We said: Fall down, one of you a foe untothe other! There shall be for you on earth ahabitation and provision for a tune.” [Al Baqarah:36]

If in the Christianity Adam and Eve remain as sinners and passed their sin to their descendants as original sin, in Islam after they regretted and asked God’sforgiveness, God forgive them. There is no original sin to pass to their descendants.

“Then Adam received from his Lord words (of revelation), and He relented toward him. Lo! He is the Relenting the Merciful.” [Al Baqarah:37]

The Jews regard themselves as the Chosen People while the Christians believe there is no salvation for those who don’t believe Jesus as a God so they send manyevangelists/missionaries all over the world to make people become Christians. Islam said only Islam the religion that God loves:

“Lo! religion with Allah is The Surrender to His will and guidance (Islam). Those who (formerly) received the Scripture differed only after knowledge came untothem, through transgression among themselves. Whoso disbelieves the revelations of Allah (will find that) Lo! Allah is swift at reckoning.” [Ali ‘Imran:19]

“And whoso seeketh as religion other than the Surrender to Allah (Islam) it will not be accepted from him, and he will be a loser in the Hereafter.” [Ali ‘Imran:85]

Those are some differences in Judaism, Christianity,and Islam. Though there are many more differences, yetMuslims are recommended to have a good socialrelationship with them as long they are not hostile orinsulting Muslims or Islam.

Though there is no compulsion in religion, yet Islamforbids Muslims to mix their religions with others.Your religion is for you and our religion is for us.That is the Islamic teaching.

Akhter,Please knock of the silly cut and paste comments of others. If you can't think and talk for yourself, don't bother. As for Islam, Allah says you can judge a tree by the fruit it produces. If it wasn't for oil money the muslim arabs would still be living in tents in the desert, cutting each others throats instead of ours.

As for Islam being tolerant, just read the histories written by visitors to the mid-east in the 1800's. They describe the wretched status of the "dhimmis" living under Islam. A muslim could (and did) murder Jews or Christians without any punishment.

Finally, look at the "fruit" of the muslim countries themselves. Poverty for the masses, extreme wealth and power for the royalty/dictators/well connected. No wonder so many muslim people are willing to risk death in little boats trying to sneak into "Dar al Harb".

Yes, I will judge a tree by its fruit. Puteri wants Malaysia to avoid becoming a tree with bad fruit.

can wealth shows the religion is true?that means the religion that is full with rich people is the true religion?n most of the people in heaven r not the rich people.rich people often forget their roots,their religion.this include muslim too.so please dont judge a religion by wealth,money etc2.btw,how many bible version are they??1-2?

What's the connection again between truth and rich people? Who's making that argument here?

You misunderstand the meaning of 'version' with the regards to the Bible. The Bible can be found in many different languages. Can you compare the Bahasa Melayu Bible with a Chinese Bible? One thing is clear, the content is the same, except the language.